NHL: Flyers show ferocity in 4-2 win over Rangers

New York Rangers' Carl Hagelin (62) of Sweden fight for puck control with Philadelphia Flyers' Erik Gustafsson (29) of Sweden and Scott Hartnell (19) in the second period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 16, 2013 in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/ H. Rumph Jr)

PHILADELPHIA — Freed from the shackles of playoff pressure, apparently not intoxicated by the sweet smell of golf courses in the spring, the Flyers have suddenly changed direction again.

With a 4-2 victory over the New York Rangers Tuesday night, the Flyers weren’t about to launch any post-game speeches about destiny, fate and the miracles of sports arithmetic. Their playoff hopes are better defined by the reality of their place in the standings (still buried) rather than the number of points (now five) that separate them from the last Eastern Conference playoff seed, which is still held by the team they just defeated.

Mathematically if not spiritually alive for a playoff spot, the Flyers (19-21-3, 41 points) managed to beat two difficult teams in the space of two nights, winning in Montreal Monday and winning Tuesday night for only the second time in two years over the Rangers.

Even without looking at the standings, there should be something positive drawn from this latest change of direction. Maybe somewhere down the road, around a distant bend ... consistency lies in wait.

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As it is, a four-game winning streak that had them flirting with the idea of a stretch drive run immediately evaporated into a four-game losing streak ... one that now has turned into a somewhat bittersweet two-game consolation prize of a rebound with only five games remaining.

Not surprisingly, no one is counting on anything going forward, with the possible exception of anyone who has watched Steve Mason play. The goalie that came over from Columbus and immediately declared he was out to take Ilya Bryzgalov’s job away from him has had to win over a lot of teammates with his solid performances. He took it up a notch against the Rangers, making 38 saves behind a largely minor-league defense. Mason’s best moments came late, turning away the Rangers in the waning minutes on a number of nearby chances in a third period in which New York completely dominated.

Earlier, the Flyers took a couple of fortunate bounces and turned them in their favor on the scoreboard. They needed all the luck they could get against the Rangers while employing a Phantoms glee club of Erik Gustafsson, Oliver Lauridsen and Brandon Manning joining bench stalwart Kurtis Foster as two-thirds of the starting D.

The first bounce of fortune came when Manning, who was a minus-28 with the Phantoms this troubling season, took a shot that bounced off a Rangers stick before finding space in front of Brayden Schenn. He pushed it past Henrik Lundqvist 9:28 into the first for a 1-0 lead.

Then Gustafsson, who not long ago was sent back to the Phantoms because of poor play, continued his recent revival. Off the rush, he turned a Sean Couturier backpass into a blistering shot that Lundqvist could only wave at, and the Flyers went into the first break with a two-goal lead.

The Rangers (21-17-4, 46 points) weren’t going to take that easily. THey got one back just 2:54 into the second period when Mats Zuccarello was sprung down the right side on a long pass by John Moore, and Zuccarello took advantage of Lauridsen’s loose defense to move in and beat Mason to halve the lead.

But at the midway point of the game, Claude Giroux beat Brad Richards on a draw during a Flyers power play, the puck going right back to Kimmo Timonen, and he didn’t miss on a slapshot that made it 3-1.

The Rangers again got to within one when Ryan Callahan set-up Derek Stepan for a goal that make it 3-2. But Mason then kicked into an extra gear. He made a string of important saves, and he had to. The Rangers outshot the Flyers 13-2 by the time the third period was only half over.

But the Flyers’ patchwork defense held on behind a strong Flyers forecheck, all largely because Mason held strong throughout. Finally, Jake Voracek rifled in an empty net goal, and at least for one more night the season countdown wasn’t so gloomy.